Things of Value
by Sam-in-the-TARDIS
Summary: The (Tenth) Doctor and Rose Tyler flying around in the TARDIS trying to see the universe. But this time, the Doctor takes them to new planet, Alcontreen, where the sky is a form of art and the people are more beautiful than anything else. But what is the price they will pay for enjoying this beautiful planet?
1. Chapter 1

All credit goes to BBC and all those lovely people who bring this show to life. Thank you.

* * *

**Things of Value: Chapter 1**

Impulse. That's what makes us who we are. The things we do without even giving it any thought; the little things. Holdings doors and hands, crying while reading a book, going to help someone-

-running to save someone. This is us, the real core of our being. This is the purest form of our personalities.

My first impulse upon seeing the TARDIS for the first time was to run inside, to throw myself through those blue doors and into a new world without chips and jobs and worries. My gut told me to swing myself along those bars and hop up to the console, to test the frightening array of buttons. But it took me a moment to trust my gut.

No, impulse keeps me alive. They tell me to duck, jump, twist, run at all the right times. It's a survival instinct, I suppose. I can watch the Doctor and see the same; his survival instinct is ridiculous, with all his running and such.

The most important impulse since I stepped into the bigger-on-the-inside time machine is to stay with the Doctor._ Do not lose the Doctor, in any way_. That's my mission now.

_Well_, I think, _I'm losing him now_, running as fast as ever in an effort to catch up to the streak of pinstripe suit that shoots away from me and around another corner. I run my fingers along the length of the wall as I round the corner at full speed, my fingers bouncing along the rough rock texture of it. My pulse is rushing, adrenaline burning through me and powering my heart to keep up this ridiculously rushed pace. I laugh with each stride, pumping my arms to run faster.

The Doctor turns for a fraction of a second at the sound and flashes me a wide grin, still running. His converse scrape with each step on the rocky floor. Before I know it, a big blue box appears at a turn, and we crash through the doors. Soon, the doors rattle with the pounding of some angry alien species on the outside. We were fast enough to outrun them.

I jog up the stairs to the console and slide down to sit cross legged on the grated floor, "Gotta love the running," I whisper with a smile, still out of breath.

"Oh, yes," The Doctor locks the door before turning to face me. He strides up the ramp from the door, letting a hand trace the length of the handrail. He stands in front of me, a tall stoic statue, with his hands on his hips.

I slouch against the console, tired from the race, "We beat them by quite a bit, didn't we?" I kick his converse with a booted foot, chuckling at the thought.

"Oi!" He exclaims, pushing my foot with his, "You have to be fair - they were probably wearing ten additional pounds of leather in their uniforms, plus," He pauses, with a twinkle in his eye, "they aren't as fit as we are."

I laugh loudly, "I'll say! All this running and soon I could go home and be a professional runner."

He winces at the word home, but his brilliant smile is back in an instant. "Sure could!" He clicks his tongue the way he always does, and with a wink, jumps into action, pulling levers and spinning dials and pounding on buttons as he goes.

"Where to now, Cap-tain Rose Tyler?" he says, breaking the 'captain' in two and giving my name some extra Northern accent. He begins to throw a lever up and down repeatedly, while simultaneously holding down two buttons with a foot. I can't help but laugh, and I rise to help him.

When I reach the little silver buttons he is not-quite-struggling to press, I gently nudge his foot aside with a hand and hold them down myself. Once he's rebalanced, I stroke my chin in an act to look like it's a tough question. "Let's see... How about some place quiet and peaceful and without angry Judoons who missed the thrill of chasing after you?" I can't help but grin at the end.

The Doctor pouts, shifting his weight so that he can spin some round dial, "Well, I suppose I could manage that. But you know that would be no fun," he smiles down at the console, typing this and that into the sliding keyboard. He nods at me, and I let go of the buttons, deciding to walk round the console, flicking switches on and off as I go.

"How about... some where... in the _future_. Some place really, really interesting, where maybe we can stay and enjoy it rather than be chased out?" I say, stopping when I reach him, "I mean, don't worry, I have no doubt that we'll run into some trouble. We can't seem to avoid it, you know." I hip check him lightly before spinning around to his other side.

He laughs slightly, and looks me in the eye, "_That's_ my girl," he shouts, finding the largest zig-zag plotter and putting all his weight into pulling it down. The TARDIS hums to life, more alive than before, and the blue centerpiece rises and pumps in its own blue light. I can feel the moment that we are pulled from our current time and physical location and thrust into the time vortex. I seem to be more sensitive to it now, with the whole Bad Wolf incident and all that.

I glance at the Doctor while the TARDIS flies, watch him in his stance with his feet apart and his hair beginning to fall into his eyes. There are moments like these where I don't think he knows that I see him, but I see the small defeats in the angle of his shoulders and in the half-lidded look of his eyes. He's tired, and so impossibly sad, but I can't fathom the reason. My thoughts are interrupted when the TARDIS lands heavily and with her whooshing wheeze.

"Ah hah!" The Doctor exclaims, rushing to the doors, and grabbing his coat from its place on the rail as he goes. "Here," he pauses as he unlocks the door, "we," he opens one of the doors and leans outside, "are." I can hear the thick smile in his voice as he holds the door open for me.

I skip down the ramp and duck under his arm holding the door, spinning outside of the TARDIS and into the pleasantly warm air. Feeling. Impulse. Instinct. My eyes are shut, and I know nothing of this world, this new place where not many humans have probably been. Or not - I don't know. I do know that it is bright, because the light shines through my eyelids, and warm. The breeze is calm and tame, bringing scents of mint and sandalwood and something-not-quite-oranges. My gut tells me this will be a good place.

I hear the Doctor's voice by my ear before I feel his hands on my hips, "Go on," he whispers, where I can hear the giddiness in his tone, "Open your eyes, Rose."

I open my eyes all at once, and gasp. I fall slightly into the Doctor's embrace, but it's alright, he's there with warm reassuring hands by my sides. I can't look every at once. I can't absorb it all-

The Doctor clears his throat, "Well, I figured I should take you somewhere really, really... brilliant, and... beautiful for once. Because, well... you know..." He trails off at the end, but I hardly notice as I gaze up at the sky.

"Oh, Doctor," I say, voice thick, "it's so..."

"I know."

The atmosphere is completely awash with color. Every color in every shade from every palette of every painter in this universe is flying up above in long, moving clouds like multicolored fish in a school. It is magnificent. The colors twist and turn and create new shades and hues when they cross each other. Blues and oranges and greens and yellows and, oh goodness that red... they all float peacefully above our heads, blending and covering the entire sky like paint on a worldwide canvas. The sun -or maybe suns- burns through and makes every single color shine.

I've never seen anything so beautiful.

~o0o~

"This is the most wonderful thing I've ever seen," she says, turning in my arms to gape at the atmospheric art, head tilted back and leaning on my chest.

I put my head on top of hers and hope she hears the happiness in my voice when I respond, "I know."

But I'm not talking about the sky.


	2. Chapter 2

_All credit goes to BBC and all those lovely people who bring this show to life. Thank you._

* * *

**Things of Value: Chapter 2**

The planet really was remarkable. The atmosphere was breathtaking, and I hadn't even looked at the ground yet. Or the people.

The Doctor pulled away and walked a few steps from the TARDIS, "The atmospheric color is from the rich store of gasses this planet has. Each color is a different type of gas, and when they merge and interact with each other up there it gets all... colorful." He smiles, and runs a hand through his hair. I want to do that.

"This is absolutely brilliant," I tell him as I close the distance between us that he created. I take his hand; his fingers are unimaginably long and thin. "I love it."

His twists his fingers with mine, "Good. Would you like to see the rest of this world, Rose Tyler?"

I pull on his hand as I step away from the TARDIS, "Oh, yes." I say it like he does, with his accent, and he chuckles. I turn away from him, still keeping his hand in mine, and I look at the actual planet for the first time.

The first thing I notice is the large expanse of grass. At first I think it's a body of water, because it's all blue, but then I am able to see the individual strands and it hits me that it's a great big blue field. I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised, considering everything I've seen during my time with the Doctor. Beyond the vast meadow lies a sparkling spatter of silver, ablaze in the light of the suns (I've determined that there are at least three). When I've blinked the star-shine from my vision, I can clearly make out tall, twisting spires of silver and glass, all reaching up to the beautiful rainbow sky that is reflected in the city. I envy the Doctor and his knowledge of the many languages of the universe - I don't have enough words to describe the intense beauty of this planet, with it's artistic atmosphere and its radiant city. I'm overwhelmed with the pulchritude of it all.

We begin to walk across the grass, the Doctor humming some tune that I've never heard as we go. My fingers are still entwined in his, and I can't help but hope that we never part, this wonderful man with his wonderful box. I squeeze his hand and continue to walk.

After I've had my fill of staring at the magnificent city that towers before us, I turn to look at the scenery some more. At my feet, the tall blue grass glimmers and waves. Miniscule red flowers grow at the tops of the stalks, along with even smaller white blooms. It gives the field a multi-colored look as it rolls under the gentle wind. The Doctor walks slightly in front of me, leading us through the tall grass and towards the city.

~o0o~

Here we go again. Another adventure. I won't ever get enough of this, I think, though I've obviously established that already. I won't ever get enough of travelling through time and space, with Rose. I'm very aware of her fingers in my hand, slender and warm. I sigh, glancing back at her to find that she is looking at everything at once with an expression of awe painted across her face. It's a look I will do anything to recreate every day.

I turn back around and face the city. I've been to this planet before, Alcontreen, but not this hemisphere. It's cooler where I went, but it's the same sky and the same populating species, of that I'm sure. From what I can see, the city is made of silver, iron, and diamonds. They really do love their diamonds, don't they? I think, remembering back to the last time I visited.

"The Alcon," I begin, speaking loudly over the rushing voices of the stalks of grass, "they are the species of this planet. I've met them before, and I remember them as very intelligent people, and very creative. They've lived here for, oh, a few thousand years, and they take a lot of pride in the beauty of Alcontreen."

Rose stumbles over something in the grass, putting extra weight in our combined hands. "Oh. What do they look like?"

Hmm. "They are... well... sort of difficult to describe. You'll see them when we arrive at the city, but I suppose... Ah! I guess they resemble what humans call 'centaurs'. They have torsos that could be considered humanoid, but they have the lower halves that look like another species. Like their planet, they are also very beautiful."

"I look forward to meeting them," she says.

By now we have made it most of the way across the field, and the Rivaldic flowers blooming in the grass are changing from red and white to gold and yellow. I wonder if Rose notices. At the thought, I pull my fingers from hers. I feel her hand grow tense as I pull away, and I know she doesn't understand. I turn around and smile reassuringly at her before bending down and plucking one of the stalks from the ground. The one I took has three large gold blooms on it, laced with veins of white when examined closely.

I spin around to find Rose looking at me expectantly. "Here," I say, walking towards where she stopped. "It suits you." I reach out to hand her the flower.

In the last instant before she reaches for it, I change my mind, and tuck the strand behind her ear instead. "There!" I say, adjusting it to make sure it won't fall. "It matches your hair."

She smiles and hooks her arm through mine, and we continue across the plain, arm in arm.

"Thank you."

~o0o~

We arrive at the city in no time. Every once in a while I reach up to pat the flower to reassure myself that it hasn't fallen. I love it. I noticed that it was gold, instead of the red one's nearest to the TARDIS, and it does, in fact, match my hair.

When we near the city, I can make out more details than before. First of all, the entire area is surrounded by trees that look very much like wire sculptures, all twisted and curved elegantly. There appear to be fruit hanging from the branches that reach away from the city, and at first glance I am confused.

"Doctor?" I say, touching the sleeve of his coat. He hmms, continuing to walk towards the city. "What are those trees by the perimeter of the city?"

"Ah!" He says, picking up the pace, "Those are Neanderan vines, not trees. They are designed by a very famous Alconi artist, and they are actually a method of lighting the way to the city, as well as a beautiful decoration for the Alcon."

This makes more sense. I watch the lights that I thought were fruit blink brightly in the growing dark. I realize then that night is falling, and I watch the lights along the edge of the city brilliantly illuminate the buildings closest to it.

Eventually, we reach a gate made of twisted iron. Behind it, there is a deep tunnel, full of moving figures that I can't quite see. I'm excited to meet these Alcon, and I squint to make them out in the darkness.

We pass the row of trees and stop before the gate. It looks like a gigantic letter M, with swooping sides and intricate wire patterns woven throughout. Small lights - that look very much light Earthen Christmas lights - line the entire structure.

The Doctor pulls away and approaches the gate. He walks right up to it, and places both hands along the break in the doors. Where his hands meet the metal, white light grows and begins to spread upwards and out, lighting the center of the gate. I giggle, and reach to trace my fingers along the patterns of wire. Light jumps to life under my touch, and between the two of us, the entire gate is aglow. A bell sounds nearby, and the gate opens.


	3. Chapter 3

_All credit goes to BBC and all those lovely people who bring this show to life. Thank you._

* * *

**Things of Value: Chapter 3**

Rose and I push through the gate as it parts in front of us. I watch the glowing light dance in Rose's eyes, and smile as we move forward. There is so much to be seen in her eyes, in her face, in every little movement she makes. There's awe in the way her lips part as she looks at everything at once and a spark in her eyes that I could recognize from a universe away and she justs looks _so..._

I shake my head and continue on. There is no word in any language to describe her, except for

_Rose._

Just _Rose._

_How am I going to show her around if I can't even concentrate on anything?_ I laugh in my head and force myself to think of something -anything- else. I know the Alcon and how they function as a society; soon the Guardsmen will come welcome us-

"Greetings!" I hear the booming, smooth voice come from my right, along with the soft padding of feet. I turn and Rose does the same.

_Now_ I remember exactly what the magnificent Alcon look like. I'd almost forgotten. I'll bet Rose finds them very handsome. Smirking, I look over at her as discreetly as I can to find that she's obviously trying to contain the amazement in her eyes. _Rose._

This is why I brought her here.

"Greetings!" I reply, careful to keep my voice in a low range, as is respectful in this region of the galaxy. "We declare ourselves as visitors from outside of this galaxy; just the two of us. I've left my vehicle outside of your borders. May we enter this city?" The polite way of speaking is slowly coming back to me, despite the many years since my last visit.

"Absolutely. We haven't had your kind in within our borders in many years; I'm sure our people will be delighted to see you walking amongst us." The Guardsmen bows, one foreleg extending out and the other bending. Once he has risen, I bend over in a respectful bow, and I sense that Rose follows my lead. I'm proud of how wise she has grown since she first travelled in the TARDIS.

She stands up tall and smiles at me.

~o0o~

I can't help but grin when I see the Alcon that approaches us. They truly are a beautiful species, if every person looks like him.

The man at the gate continues to speak with the Doctor, and I hear him introduce himself as Rax. I know I should be paying attention to how the Doctor is interacting with the Alcon, but I can't stop myself from paying close attention to what Rax looks like.

He is ridiculously tall, at least three heads taller than the Doctor, which is four heads taller than me. I notice that rather than look down on the Doctor and I, he bends his legs so that they are of nearly equal height. His face looks fairly equine, though his eyes are more centered than on a horse. His mouth is not very horse-like either; it's much smaller, and more human. His teeth look like mine. His face is silver blue, and his eyes are a deep brown-gold-red as he looks at the Doctor. Long, flat horns swoop from his ears to meet nearly a foot behind his head. They look like they are metal, and sharp as well.

As a whole, he looks very much like a centaur. _The Doctor was right in that aspect_, I think. Rax's torso is humanoid, with a thin layer of speckled blue fur covering everything from his neck to his wrists. He has no clothing on, and no belly button. He has strong shoulders and arms, and the backs of his hands have scales. The bottoms of his hands look human, besides the silver sheen. I avoid glancing downwards further, but eventually I can't help it, and I find that there is nothing to have avoided seeing. The human torso blends into another form near his abdomen, something that resembles more of a horse-wolf-large cat combo. The fur grows thicker the lower I look, and his legs are covered. The legs look very thin and elegant, and fur pools at his feet, which look like hooves, but made of flesh, not... hoof-material. He has a tail, and it looks like what you would see on a bobcat, cut short. The only clothing is a swath of royal blue fabric that is tied around his stomach, flowing over his back legs. All in all, he looks strong and fast and handsome. Definitely handsome.

On that note, I look back at the other attractive man within arms reach. The Doctor is animated, speaking with the Alcon with wild hand movements and fire in his eyes.

_How can a person be so passionate?_ I think, watching him. _Not just the magnificent things, but everything. Just the way he moves is full of meaning and thought and oh my goodness his hair-_

I try to tune out of my own thoughts and into the conversation of actual importance to find that the Time Lord and the Alcon are speaking of entrance to the city-

"To proceed inside, I'm going to need you to walk through the Vault, as well as record your names," Rax says, turning to walk away from the gate and down the hall. Now I can clearly make out the forms I noticed earlier, Alcon of every shade of blue and silver, trotting around and conversing in the large tunnel.

"That seems reasonable!" The Doctor says cheerfully, pulling me by the hand after Rax. We make our way through the crowd of Alcon until we reach a metal wall, broken only by a silver circular door. This end of the tunnel is darker than the other end with the gate. Gentle fingers of pale, pearly light curl around the edges of the door, sneaking out between the cracks and dissipating as they stretch away.

Rax stops, and turns to face us with a stoic expression. "When you go forward, I cannot go with you - I've already been Evaluated. All you have to do is walk through the Vault with your companion until you reach the opposite side, and then you will encounter the Collector." This is where Rax pauses. "If you don't mind me asking, do you have any form of money on your person?"

The Doctor looks at me and grins, "Nope." I know he never has money on him; why would he need it? He's so cocky he just thinks people will _give_ him what he wants.

Rax frowns. "What about any valuables, maybe gems or pictures of loved ones?"

The Doctor reacts to this, "Did you say we would meet the Collector?"

Rax walks in place, uncomfortable, "Yes, but I cannot speak of him outside of the Vault."

The Doctor shakes his head, and runs his hand absentmindedly through his hair. He's facing the door to the Vault, his brow furrowed and his eyes unfocused. I'm growing concerned; he seems frustrated. "Very well," he says, his voice low and gravelly, "shall we go?"

I nod, and try to piece together the change in the Doctor's mood. He's definitely forgotten something; I've seen that look many times before. But this isn't just forgetting to turn the brakes on in the TARDIS, this is something... _really_ important, by the looks of it.

I feel someone's gaze, and focus back into reality and away from my train of thought. Rax is the one staring, and he seems to really look at me for the first time. His eyes look concerned and opened wide, and now I'm more confused and concerned than before.

He paws the ground and takes a step towards me, "Do _you_ have anything of Value on your person?" he asks me. I look at the Doctor, wishing I'd payed attention when he conversed with Rax earlier. The word 'value' has so much weight to it when Rax says it, I know it means something more than the TARDIS can translate for me. The Doctor just nods without looking at me, and turns back to the door in the wall.

I shake my head, "I... uh... I don't think so. Are we not allowed to bring anything in?" I ask.

Rax snorts, and smiles. "No, it's not that. I suppose I'll leave the two of you now, and I hope to see you together when you depart."

The Doctor nods without really looking up from whatever he is thinking, and Rax takes this to mean he is dismissed. He trots away from us, back towards the gate, glancing back at me with a look that on a human I would have immediately recognized as worry. He gallops away and melts into the flowing crowd of silver and blue legs.

"Doctor?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes," he smiles again, pulled out of his thoughts by my voice, "Shall we walk through the Vault?" He smirks, grabs my hand, and heads for the door.

I can't help but think the Doctor is hiding something.


End file.
